"Hey." Steve smiled when he saw Kara waiting in a coffee shop by the school.
"Hi."
"I saw Alex, the older one, just now, she looked pretty good all things considered. But I am so glad I'm not her doctor."
"I don't blame you." Kara smiled.
"So, how are you doing?"
"Me? I'm fine."
"You know you don't need to lie to me?" Steve asked. "I mean I know you need to be strong for your family, but it is just us here. You don't have to pretend to be okay."
"What? No. I'm fine. Okay, not fine, but you know kind of fine maybe." She said as Steve silently watched her. "Okay fine I'm not fine, I scared and tired and angry and scared, did I say scared already. I probably did but it needs saying twice. I keep thinking about what they could have done to Alex, my Alex, when I was away. But I can't say that to anyone as Alex, older one, is already beating herself up over the fact she was kidnapped. And then there is MJ and Alex, my one, they are just constantly fighting and neither will say why and it just wears me down. And all I want to do is figure out why anyone would do this so I can stop it from happening again, but nothing makes sense and I'm sorry I'm rambling."
"Feel better?" Steve asked.
"A little. Thank you."
"Any time." He smiled. "I mean it, anytime you need to unburden, especially while Alex is out of action, you can call me."
"I appreciate that, but you have done more than enough." She said as the coffee shop door opened and the teenage Alex walked in with Martin.
"Hi mom." She greeted.
"Hey, how'd you know I was in here?" Kara asked confused.
"Warner told me." She explained nodding back at the DEO guard waiting outside.
"No MJ?" Kara asked looking round.
"No. He went straight home."
"Was he okay?"
"Ticked at having a DEO escort." Alex explained.
"Why?" Kara asked confused.
"Jess didn't like it." The teen shrugged as Steve's phone went off. Reading the message he frowned.
"Problem?" Kara asked.
"Yeah, one of my patients has taken a turn for the worse. I have to get to the hospital. Any chance you can take Martin back-"
"You know I am seventeen and capable of walking back by myself?" Martin asked his uncle.
"Yeah, but I'd feel happier if you didn't." He said.
"Don't worry we'll take him back." Kara smiled.
"Thank you. Next coffee is on me." He said leaving.
00
"What are you doing?" Kara asked entering her sister's hospital room and seeing her look at a tablet.
"Figuring out how to stop this happening again."
"You are meant to be resting."
"I am. I'm in bed." Alex pointed out.
"That's not quite the same." Kara pointed out as the door opened and the doctor walked in.
"Do you want me to go?" Kara asked.
"You can stay." Alex said. "You'll hear anyway."
"Okay, we have just got your latest scans back." The doctor started.
"Can I go home?"
"You can barely sit up." The doctor pointed out.
"I can barely sit up just as well at home." Alex pointed out. "What did the scans show?"
"The good news is your bones are all fusing nicely. But it is like we feared, the procedure to repair your tendon in your leg wasn't successful so we are going to have to go back to traditional methods, which as you know take time."
"How much time?" Kara asked.
"She won't be at work for weeks if not months. While the tendon repairs she needs to not use her leg."
"But there is no more treatment until physio right?" Alex asked.
"That's right. For now it is pain management and rest."
"Which again I can do from home."
"I don't recommend that." He said.
"But you aren't denying it."
"We'll talk in a few days." He said leaving the sisters alone.
Turning Alex saw the look Kara was giving her and asked.
"What?"
"Don't what me. Do I need to get Eliza down here?"
"You know the mom threat stopped working a while ago." Alex said.
"You tell yourself that." Kara responded before noticing her sister had spaced out. "Alex?" She called.
"Sorry what?" Alex asked looking back at her.
"You okay?" Kara asked wondering if the head injury had caused serious damage.
"No. I'm angry. Whoever it was could have done anything to MJ." Alex said, her anger obvious.
"I know. But MJ is safe." Kara reminded her sister. "But he needs you to be well and that involves not escaping from hospital."
"Has he said anything to you?" Alex asked.
"About what?"
"What's bothering him."
"He blames himself for not noticing."
"How could he have done? I mean the DEO didn't notice."
"We've all tried arguing that point, but he hasn't listened. He's really withdrawn."
"All the more reason for me not to be here." Alex countered.
-00-
"Sure you don't want me to carry you?" Kara offered.
"I'm fine." Alex said as she inched her way to the front door.
"No you're not." Kara said, picking her up and moving her with superspeed to the bedroom.
"I could have made it." Alex argued.
"You have made it." Kara pointed out before Chewie sprinted to the room and jumped up on the bed and licked Alex.
"Easy." Alex said as Kara lifted him off her.
"Looks like he missed you." Kara said stroking Chewie before putting him back on the bed. "I'll be back soon." She added leaving and heading to MJ's room.
"MJ." She called over the loud music. Not getting a response she said. "I'm coming in." With that she opened the door and moved to his desk before turning his music off. She then looked at the bed where MJ was lying, staring up at the ceiling.
"You have a visitor." Kara said.
"I don't want to see anyone."
"Yes you do." Kara argued. "But if you want me to carry you to them I can. And by can I mean I will."
"Fine." He said standing.
"This way." Kara said leading him out of his room and away from the stairs.
"Where are we going?" He asked confused as Kara led him into his mother's room. "Why-" He started before seeing his mother. "Mom? What are you doing here? Why aren't you in hospital?"
"I missed you." Alex said gingerly tapping the empty side of the bed.
"Shouldn't you be in hospital?" He asked as he sat down while his aunt disappeared.
"I'll heal better here." Alex said. "And I missed you."
"I'm sorry-" MJ started only for Alex to cut in.
"MJ, listen to me. The person who did this, had been planning for a long time. They had studied me in detail and trained so that they could just take over my life."
"I should have seen through them."
"Everyone is saying that." Alex said. "But the truth is they were too good."
"No they weren't. I mean aunt Kara saw something was wrong."
"Your aunt sees the world differently to most. You know that." Alex said.
"I'm sorry. If I paid attention they could have found you before you got hurt."
"I doubt it." Alex said. "I need you to answer something for me."
"What?"
"Did the imposter hurt you at all?"
"No. I told you already, I barely saw them." MJ said.
"That's all that matters." Alex said.
-00-
"When did you get here?" The teenage Kara asked as her aunt walked into the lounge.
"A couple of minutes ago. But I superspeeded to your mom's room."
"Why?"
"To drop your mom off."
"She's here?" The teen asked.
"She's with MJ." The older Kara said.
"Is it okay for her to be here?"
"As long as she rests. She wanted to be here for MJ." Her aunt said sitting next to her. "Where's Alex and Eliza?"
"Out shopping. They should be back soon."
"But for now it us just us?"
"I guess."
"So we can finally catch up." The older Kara said. "So how's college?"
"Hard." The teen complained.
"Too much partying?"
"No. That novelty wore off in the first week."
"So Diz -" The older Kara started.
"Real subtle." The teen responded.
"I'm not exactly known for my subtle approach." The older Kara smiled. "And I was surprised he was at the hospital."
"Well he was worried about us. And it wasn't like it was a bad break up."
"So what was it?"
"He didn't want to be a distraction and I didn't want him feel like he had to keep coming over to see me so we ended it."
"But you're still friends?"
"I guess. I mean we hadn't spoken until the hospital."
"So there's no one else?"
"No."
"No one?" The older Kara asked surprised.
"No."
"You know there's nothing wrong with dating. I mean you have never really dated." Kara said.
"What was Diz?"
"A relationship."
"Aren't you the wrong person to offer dating advice?" The teenager asked.
"Absolutely." Her aunt agreed. "But as your favourite aunt I can give as much advice as I want." She added causing the teen to smile as the door opened and Eliza and the teenage Alex entered carrying lots of bags.
"I'll just put this away then I will go to the hospital, do you want at a ride?" Eliza said looking at her eldest granddaughter.
"You don't need to. Alex is here." Her daughter said.
"Why?"
"I brought her here. But she was about to escape. She wanted to see MJ. And she knows if she moves from bed she goes straight back to hospital." Kara listed shrinking slightly under Eliza's look of disapproval.
-00-
"How are you doing?" Kara asked as she and her daughter walked Chewie.
"I'm sorry?"
"For what?"
"Not noticing."
"That's not on you." Kara said. "No one noticed."
"Chewie did." The teen said. "Every time he saw Alex, the fake one, he growled. I should have paid more attention."
"No one saw what was going on." Her mother reminded her. "But I need you to answer something."
"Okay."
"How long were you living at home and why? Was it because of something the fake Alex did?"
"No. I just preferred it at home especially with MJ. And Alex, the fake Alex, didn't care."
"So how long were you living alone?" Kara asked.
"Most of the time you were gone." The teen said causing Kara to hug her.